Do you know spintires? The first episode of the title was reserved for a public of informed players, amateur of fastidious driving simulation. An audience reduced to the PC universe and which had gone "unnoticed" in the eyes of Focus Home Interactive at the time, according to Cédric Lagarrigue, CEO of the publisher, during an interview on the microphone of jeuxvideo.com. Which didn't help bring the title to the fore.
3 years later, it is the studio Saber Interactive which puts the cover again, this time under the control of Focus Home Interactive, to update a title already full of quality. Do we take the same ones and start over? Not quite. It is already good to recall the strengths of the previous title, which we find again in MudRunner.
Maps and vehicles
The player always evolves on impassable muddy grounds, where raging river waters and dangerous natural obstacles, all of which react realistically, block you. When starting for the first time, only 2 out of 6 cards are playable, the others will be unlocked as you progress. The game features 19 vehicles, ranging from the “small” Jeep-type car to the impressive E-7310, a 20-ton, 8-wheel-drive monster. Each of the vehicles has its own characteristics and its dedicated equipment: spare wheel, trailer, crane, platform, tank, etc. are all amenities to choose before hitting the road (or to find along the way).
Principle of play
It hasn't changed, the game stays true to itself. You will need to transport wood to the sawmill by locating yourself with a map. What is that all about? Oh yes ! But beware, we are in the presence of a simulation, a real one. We are far from a Farming Simulator.
Have you ever seen an episode of "Extreme convoys"? It's pretty much the same. To go from point A to point B, it takes time, a lot of time, AND ESPECIALLY patience ! Because progress in kilometers of mud requires thoroughness and tact, but also strategy. Indeed, at the wheel of vehicles consuming several liters of fuel per minute, every second counts. Also you should not venture headlong anywhere at the risk of having to call for assistance for a hand or rather a winch.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1XjxqIkr-og
The Jeep can also be very useful by its "low" consumption which will allow you to explore a map and unlock the hidden parts and other hidden vehicles. On the other hand, this car is more fragile than a heavy truck, the damage of the vehicles being taken into account, it will be necessary to take care not to abrupt the mechanics and especially the transmission (avoid driving at full throttle with the differential lock activated by example).
So as not to spoil the fun from the start, 2 game modes are available to you: the simulation, very very complicated and realistic, and the simplified, where the fuel consumption as well as the damage are reduced but also some gameplay facilities such as teleporting a vehicle to the garage in the event of a breakdown and the possibility of moving forward in the day / night cycle for example.
But then what changes?
If you are a " Spintires All Terrain Trucks Simulator“, You are surely telling yourself that the changes are minor and you are not quite wrong. Personally, I did not dwell more than that on the first version of the title which I had found a little confusing by its difficulty and its risky camera management. I rediscovered here a graphically stunning title, with amazing physics. And even if the camera always does its own and it is very difficult to place it correctly, the fun of the game is there.
The final version of the game will come with a mod conversion tool. This tool will allow players to make Spintires: MudRunner compatible mods originally created for Spintires. The multiplayer mode, which will not be a luxury given the difficulty, offers an experience of up to 4 simultaneous players. Finally, be aware that the game, despite a very advanced graphic and physical experience, is not overly greedy, and that it behaved without flinching, all details to the max, on an ASUS G552 laptop (core i7, 16GB of RAM, and nVidia 960M).
La sentence
Overall rating - 80%
80%
Hours of tearing your hair out
True to itself, the game will undoubtedly seduce the players of the first part. There is nevertheless an episode reserved for fans of crazy driving simulation, a relatively closed circle. It still has this "je ne sais quoi" that makes you never tire of playing it. With the mods coming and the multi mode tested a few hours before publishing this article, the title could help us get through the long winter evenings to come.